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Taute rules out of Stormers openner

Stormers and Springbok fullback Jaco Taute has been ruled out of his team’s Super Rugby opener in Johannesburg on Saturday.

The Stormers had a bye in the opening round and Taute was an 11th hour withdrawal from the Stormers side lost 29-24 to Boland in a Super Rugby warm up match held in Wellington on Saturday.

Stormers coach Allister Coetzee said after the match that Taute’s knee had a slight swelling and he was advised by the team’s medical staff to rest.

“There was no point in sending Jaco out when he was not 100% fit,” said Coetzee.

“Some tissue had flared up around his knee and he’ll need a week’s rest to recover sufficiently.”

Despite the surprise defeat, the Stormers took comfort from the fact that the uncapped players who ran out showed they have the talent to carry the can at Super Rugby level in the near future.

“Four of our players were still at school last year but they showed that they are ready to make the step into the senior ranks.

“They played their first first-class match against a first-class team and I was impressed with all of them. You’ll see many of these youngsters finding their way into the Stormers side in years to come.

“We must also give credit to Boland because they played well and never allowed us back in the game because they remained competitive right up to the final whistle. They were really tigerish in their approach.

“We achieved what we set out to achieve. We needed to give certain players game time and we needed to look at some young players.”

Apart from the extreme heat conditions which necessitated drinks breaks midway through each half, the field was heavy going.

Boland skipper Franzel September said his side adjusted better to the taxing conditions.

“In the Boland we train in these conditions very often,” September said.

“Many of the players had looked forward to this match against the Stormers for some time so we were overwhelmed that we won.

“We were a bit surprised that the Stormers didn’t come that hard at us. They obviously wanted to have a good run against us but we were so competitive that we snapped up every chance to turn over and then counter-attack.”

Abe Davids, Boland coach, said he was pleased his side had showed commitment from start to finish.

“Our primary aim was to stay in the game throughout and allowed us to maintain the pressure all afternoon,” said Davids.

“We handled the situation well and we never allowed them to settle down. We did very well at the breakdowns and managed quite a few turn-overs.

“The result will work wonders for team and we can look forward to a great season with a win against the Stormers under our belts.”